“Move.” An intense command leaves my throat and flies through the darkness. The chatter intensifies in my ears. The same language my granny used.
I feel the urge to throw my arms above me. I follow my body’s command, flinging my aching arms into the air, fingers curling like hooks, and the trees follow my movement. Their branches twist, interlocking like the fingers of clasped hands. Some bend low, their gnarled limbs forming an archway. Others coil into spirals, their leaves rustling in startled excitement.
My heart is now beating at a hundred miles an hour. I am doing this. Me. Harriet Montgomery. No, fuck that. Harriet Chattox. That is my name.
The chatter in my brain sings my name. “Chattox, Chattox, Chattox.”
A smirk plays at the edge of my lips. The power is intoxicating, the woodland around me bending not just in obedience, but in reverence.
I pull my arms back down to my sides and the trees snap back into form. Silence fills the air as if nothing has happened, the chatter abruptly stopping. A secret between us and the woods around us. The secret that my power has grown beyond anything I was prepared for, and my anger is the catalyst.
I look at Granny who is now stood looking directly into my eyes. Her face is a picture of pride and fear all wrapped up in one.
“Did I do something wrong?” I ask, hoping I haven’t.
She takes a moment to clear her voice, still stood stunned at my ability. “No, no,” she whispers at first before her voice gets more clarity and volume. “Nothing wrong. I’m just in shock. It has taken me years to do magic on a bigger scale, but you, Harriet, you’re already there. I didn’t think it was possible. Your power is something I have never witnessed before. I thought it was the twin flame being in effect, but no.” She pauses for a moment. “I think it’s you. Your power is strong.”
“Strong?” I ask, unsure.
“Your magic knows no bounds.” She gasps. “They must know. That is why they want you so badly. Oh gosh, if they know that you know how strong you are, they will lock you away, terrified of what you can do, expose you even. We can’t expose ourselves, Harriet.” She rushes towards me griping my arms in her hands with force. “You must not tell anyone about tonight until we know how much they know.”
“I wouldn’t…” I stammer. “I’d never expose us.”
She eases her grip on me. “Sorry, darling.” She strokes the marks where her hands have been. “We must tread carefully here. The less anyone knows, the better. Let us get back. Enough magic for tonight.”
I don’t move. I have too many questions. “I heard others in my ear. They spoke in the language you did.”
She tips her head back, looking up at the moon before bringing it back down to look at me. “A strong witch indeed.” She smiles. “Those are your ancestors. Witches before us. They will follow you whenever you may need them. Do not fear them, Harri. They will never hurt you.”
“I wasn’t scared.” I smile back, emotion still raw in my throat. “They sounded like home.”
She embraces me. “You are home.”
I hold her, her cinnamon and warm scent tickling my nostrils. I sigh and pull out of her warm hands. “I want to see Sam.”
She turns to look at me and opens her mouth to object. but stops and drops her shoulders. “No matter what I say, it won’t stop you, will it?” she questions, hopeful that it will.
I shake my head. “I need to see him, Granny. He is my twin flame, whatever that is.” My heart aches at the sound of me calling him that. “I need to know he’s OK, that’s all.”
She nods. “I understand and I am not going to stop you, Harri. But be careful, OK?”
“I will,” I reassure her.
“OK, OK.” She nods. “Do you know where he will be?”
“The last time I found him out here he was in the clearing just west of the cottage, not far from the village.”
She grabs the lantern off the tree and places it into my hand. “You don’t stop or talk to anyone who isn’t Sam, do you understand?”
“I’ll be fine, Granny.” I place a kiss on her cheek, warm and soft against me. “There’s nobody out here but witches.” I smile from the corner of my mouth.
She looks around her, studying the woods as if looking for hidden ears. She looks back at me, slightly reassured that thereis not anyone there. “You are right, but the stakes are so high now, for us all, but especially you, Harri. You are special and I bet they know it already.”
I take her hand. “I’ll be fine.”
She nods and walks off back towards the cottage. I stand and watch her until her silhouette is lost in the darkness.
I need to see him.
